Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012

Addressing gaps in protection

The Act improves the safety of a person named as the aggrieved during the period of time
between a domestic violence order being made by a court and the domestic violence order
becoming enforceable by being served on the respondent.

Domestic violence order is a term that is used in the Act to refer to both a protection order
and a temporary protection order.

Temporary Protection Orders

To minimise any gaps in protection for victims of domestic violence, the Act provides that
where a protection order is made and a temporary protection order has been served on the
respondent, the temporary protection order continues until one of the following occurs:

the respondent is served with a copy of the protection order;

the order otherwise becomes enforceable, such as when a police officer tells the
respondent about the existence of an order; or

the protection order ends.

This means that when the respondent cannot be located to be served with, or told about, a
final protection order, a temporary protection order that has been served on a respondent
will continue for the same period of time as the protection order.

This removes some of the opportunity for a respondent to avoid being subject to the
conditions of a final protection order by actively evading the police who are attempting to
serve the final order.

Police Protection Notices

Where a police protection notice has been issued and the court subsequently makes a
domestic violence order, the police protection notice continues until the order is served on
the respondent or otherwise becomes enforceable (for example, if a respondent has been

Date: 07/2012
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told about the existence of the order). Then the respondent will become bound by the
conditions imposed by the domestic violence order.

If the court makes a temporary protection order on the same conditions as the police
protection notice, the temporary protection order is taken to have been served on the
respondent when it is made so it is immediately enforceable against the respondent.

Release Conditions

Where release conditions are imposed on a person released from custody and a protection
order is made by the court, the release conditions remain in force until the domestic violence
order is served, or becomes otherwise enforceable.

If the court makes a temporary protection order in the same terms as the release conditions,
the temporary protection order is taken to have been served on the respondent when it is
made and is immediately enforceable against the respondent.

Power to require a respondent to remain for the purpose of service

The Act enables police to require a person named as a respondent to an application or

order to remain at a location for the time reasonably necessary for the police officer to serve
the respondent with an application or order or advise the respondent of the conditions of an
order.

This increases the opportunity for police to ensure service requirements are met and means
that protection orders can be made by the court and domestic violence orders can be
enforced.

Date: 07/2012
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